Ovechkin beat fellow Russian Andrei Vasilevskiy of the Tampa Bay Lightning with four minutes left in the third period after getting stopped twice by him earlier.

Ovechkin is on the verge of becoming the NHL's all-time goals leader, and he can pass Gretzky's mark of 894 before the end of season. The Capitals standout currently has 884 career goals after scoring Washington's only goal in a 3-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday afternoon.

With that goal, Ovechkin is now just 10 away from tying Hockey Hall of Famer Wayne Gretzky for most all-time (894). It was his 31st goal of the season in a 3-1 loss, Washington's third straight, but with 22 games remaining in the regular season, it's a brighter spot than most think.